


All Around Us, It Fell

by RoRoUrBoat



Series: Pridecember 2020 [8]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Angst, Hurt No Comfort, M/M, Post-Yu-Gi-Oh! The Dark Side of Dimensions, To Be Continued, Unreliable Narrator
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 17:47:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27970244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoRoUrBoat/pseuds/RoRoUrBoat
Summary: Pridecember Day 8 - ThroneDirect sequel to "And It Came Crashing Down."Atem knows that he'll have to let Kaiba go. Maybe if someone had told Kaiba that, things would have been different.
Relationships: Kaiba Seto/Yami Yuugi | Atem
Series: Pridecember 2020 [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2035744
Comments: 4
Kudos: 7





	All Around Us, It Fell

**Author's Note:**

> So! Day 8! Like I said in the summary, this is a direct sequel to my day 2 fic, so if you want context, you should go read that first. This is more angst and plot heavy than my last fics, so I really hope you like it. I might turn the fics relating to this one into their own (more organized) multi chapter fic. We'll see.
> 
> *As of December 8, it's mostly unedited, as it's hella late at the time of posting but I still wanted to get this out. It will likely be polished in the next 24 hours.

The cool shade of the palace held a mood in stark contrast to that of the desert. Back in the heat and grit of the sands, things had been… simple, if not easy. Atem talked, and Kaiba talked back. It was progress, as far as Atem was concerned, and he was satisfied. Content.  _ Happy. _

Kaiba, it seemed, wasn’t.

It began on the walk to the palace, a walk that Atem figured might be filled with talking and reminiscing, catching up. Instead, it was largely silent. Kaiba was his usual hard-to-read self, eyes narrowed either because of the sun or his own frustration, Atem couldn’t tell. Maybe both.

Atem, himself, was eager to reach the palace. To share something with Kaiba before… Well. If Atem could give Kaiba nothing else, it would be the memory of sweet lips and a softly-glowing throne room. Atem hoped it would be enough. It had to be.

Upon arrival at the palace, Atem was greeted by a frantic Mahad, who stopped short at seeing Kaiba. Wide-eyed, Mahad hurried to Atem. 

“Pharaoh…” he started, trepidation lacing his tone, “is that-”

“Seto Kaiba, my-” Atem shuffled words over in his head, briefly, before settling on one. “-rival.” Mahad stared, looking from Atem to Kaiba and back to Atem. Atem sighed and gestured for Mahad to follow him. “I won’t be long,” Atem assured a no-doubt calculating Seto Kaiba before walking a few meters away with Mahad.

“This is an issue, I’m sure you can tell,” Mahad began, “He doesn’t belong here.” He gestured to Kaiba, who was staring back. “Gods only know how he managed to get this far, but I can guarantee that it won’t last long.” 

Atem narrowed his eyes. “What does that mean?”

“You haven’t noticed?” Mahad asked. Atem shook his head. Mahad hummed. “There’s a… Drain around him. I could feel it, if only vaguely, the moment he arrived. It’s like…” Mahad shook his head. “He’s being pulled back to where he belongs. There’s no way he’ll be able to exist here for very long.” 

Atem blanched. “What do you mean by “can’t exist here”?” he asked, “Will he be sent back to his realm, or-” Mahad sighed.

“I don’t know, Pharaoh. If he insists on remaining here, in this form… I can’t say what will happen.” Mahad explained, looking back at Kaiba again. Atem turned to look, as well, and worried at his lip.

He’d have to hurry up.

Atem nodded to his friend before moving to rejoin Kaiba. A hand on his shoulder stopped him. 

“Atem…” Mahad started, voice low, “Be careful. I know you’re a man of emotion, and I don’t want to see you get hurt.” Atem blinked, then flashed Mahad a confident smile.

“I know what I’m doing.”

Once he had come back to Kaiba, Mahad leaving to with the excuse of “palace duties to attend to,” Atem set his plan into action.

Grabbing Kaiba’s hand, Atem gave him a cocky grin and led him deeper into the palace. Kaiba didn’t grin back, just… stared and allowed himself to be led. Atem concealed a frown. Was he doing something wrong…? He shook his head once. No, this was the right thing to do. It would be cruel to let Kaiba leave with nothing else.

Reaching the throne room, Atem let go of Kaiba’s hand and made a grand, sweeping gesture with his arms.

“This,” he said, largely to fill the silence Kaiba had let settle, “is the throne room.” Atem waited for Kaiba to speak, to be awed by the architecture and intricate carvings. Atem had certainly been awed the first time he could remember the throne room.

Walls adorned in clay-red and lotus-white paints, ceiling held up by towering monoliths etched with stories, the throne room was a sight to behold. The room, lit only by the sunlight streaming in, should have taken Kaiba’s breath away. Instead, Kaiba let out a huff.

Atem turned from his observation of the throne room to look at Kaiba, a soft smile already on his face.

Kaiba remained stoic, but that could easily be written off as his usual brand of unimpressed billionaire savant. Atem thought it was charming, in its own way. Atem kept his smile in place as he approached Kaiba, bridging the distance from the middle of the throne room to where Kaiba stood, silhouetted by the sun. Or, Atem meant to, at least, before he was stopped in his tracks by a sharp bark of laughter.

“Is this supposed to impress me, your highness?” Kaiba asked, an eyebrow quirked in challenge. Atem beamed, pleased to see Kaiba coming back to himself. Smirking, he put a hand to his hip and shrugged, the perfect picture of cocky. Kaiba’s eyes narrowed. Atem’s smirk widened.

Then, the unexpected happened. Kaiba’s narrowed eyes turned into a fierce glare, eyes shining with palpable malice, and he took a step forward, out of the sunlight and into the cold shadows of the palace stone. Atem took a reactive step back, confusion guiding him.

Kaiba snarled, “Is that really what you thought would happen?”

“Kaiba, wha-”

“That we’d kiss, I’d take a walk through your gilded  _ tomb _ , and be so impressed that I’d stay?” Kaiba balled his fists and took another step forward, no longer silhouetted by backlight but instead illuminated in stark clarity. Atem held up his hands placatingly.

“No, that’s not what I-”

“Newsflash Pharaoh; I don’t owe you anything. You kissed me. So what? I have a company to run. I have a little brother to raise,” Kaiba snarled, crossing his arms and standing firm where he’d stopped. Atem saw red.

_ So what _ ? Did the kiss really mean that little to Kaiba…? Atem shook his head. Recentered himself. No. That wasn’t important right now. What really mattered was what Kaiba thought was happening  _ right now _ . Atem could fix that, at the very least.

Atem cut into Kaiba’s tirade, saying in an unwavering voice, “I never meant for you to stay.” Kaiba drew in a breath and stopped short, his rant falling dead to the floor. Atem smiled a soft, understanding smile.

“I know you have Mokuba. I know you have Kaiba Corp. I know that you have your future. Kaiba, no matter what, I would never take that from you. It matters too much. I just wanted to-”

“Wanted to what? Send me off with a kiss on the cheek and a memory of some old rocks? Get rid of me with a clean conscience and no backward glance?” 

Atem shook his head. “That’s not it at all, Kaiba, and you know it,” he said, tone placating

“Do I?” Kaiba seethed as Atem took an aborted step forward. He felt further from Kaiba than he could remember, and nothing seemed to reach him. Kaiba sneered, “Because it sure seems like you meant to throw me out with the rest of your pathetic friends.” Atem furrowed his brow and tried to remain calm, though his hold on his emotions was slipping faster like sand through his fingers.

“We’ve been over this, Kaiba. This is my final destiny, my final rest. You don’t belong here. I’m sure you can feel it, the loss of energy.”

“I don’t care about your magical bullshit! You don’t belong here, either! You  _ forced _ me to find a way to live my own life, damn it, you can’t just-” Kaiba stopped to take a gulping breath, and for the first time, Atem noticed that he was panting. His face was flushed, and sweat beaded at his temples. He reeked of animal desperation. Atem made to run towards him, but Kaiba held up a hand.

“Stop, goddamn it!” Kaiba panted, falling to one knee. Atem couldn’t stay still any longer. He ran to Kaiba, crossing the patch of light Kaiba sat just beyond, and knelt beside him.

“Kaiba!” Atem grabbed his shoulders, and examined him. He looked weak, frail and fragile, not something Atem ever expected to describe Kaiba as. He looked to the cuff Kaiba wore. It wasn’t just his usual strapped sleeves, but instead an ominously glowing piece of tech. Atem bit his lip. Kaiba gave a half-hearted push.

“Don’t even try it,” he managed, a frantic, wild look in his eyes. Atem apologized, sent a prayer to any god that would hear him out, and began pressing buttons.

At some point, between Atem pushing buttons desperately and Kaiba’s fervent protests and labored breathing, Atem must have found the right one. Kaiba’s body began to glow gold, and Atem breathed a sigh of relief. He smiled softly at Kaiba, the best goodbye he could manage, and lifted a hand to caress his cheek.

A hand that was glowing just as golden as Kaiba. Atem’s eyes widened, and before he could pull away, the light had fully engulfed him.

Milliseconds later, the throne room was empty, save for a slight breeze. The sunlight filtered through to the cool stone of the palace floor, and all was quiet. 

**Author's Note:**

> Don't worry, I'm continuing this tomorrow with the day 9 prompt! I'm suuuuper unsure about this one, so feel free to leave criticism in the comments! HUGE shoutout to the Prideshipping Pals discord server for help with organizing my thoughts and ideas! Seriously, this would be a very different fic without them lol.


End file.
